Lost Thing

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Teachers can support students as they generate their own interpretations of the text by scaffolding ways of bringing their own understandings and experiences to their readings. Beyond making meaning from individual images, scaffolding a form of pattern recognition can also help create a meaning for the book as a whole. The Development of Themes (PDF, 97KB) retrieval chart offers some themes in the columns to focus on, but can be modified at the teacher’s discretion (a blank column can be left for students willing or able to identify a different theme). The rows beneath each theme are to identify different aspects of the text which are somehow connected or related to the theme. The point here is to assemble the different aspects of the text which can be read as contributing to the theme in some way. By explaining the connection between the textual elements and the theme, students should be encouraged to make statements about the theme. In an interview with the ABC’s Lingua Franca program, Tan uses the metaphor of a battery to imagine the meaning-making dynamic between text and reader. As students respond to each of these questions they can attach their post-it notes under the appropriate heading. Each of their contributions should be initialed for later use and to help facilitate discussion. The initial contributions can serve as stimulus for an early discussion with the teacher choosing some interesting responses and asking students to expand on their thoughts. This could be read as a simple tale of a Lost Thing in a faceless industrial world but as with all Tan's work it invites more complex analysis. I think it evokes so well those melancholy feelings of being "other", of not fitting into a world that appears to be rushing on without you. Students need to make two decisions: one based on theme and one based on an element of construction. 1. Theme

A significant feature of Shaun Tan’s writing is the simplicity of the written text. Taken alone, the written text provides little detail about the narrative. The lost thing itself, for instance, could be read as a puppy-like creature if only the words were considered. From the narrow perspective of the written text, then, the narrative is presented in the form of an anecdote which Tan appears to offer directly to the reader: “So you want to hear a story?”. Despite the apparently bizarre nature of his encounter with a strange creature, Shaun (the human protagonist) adopts a dry, matter-of-fact tone, which is in keeping with the colourless place in which he lives. The anecdote itself is bookended by Tan traveling on a tram, a framing device that provides the impression that the anecdote is told within a single tram journey.After reading the book together and giving students further time to read it for themselves and perhaps discuss their reactions with peers, distribute about six post-it notes per student. Take each of these questions in turn and allow time for students to write their responses on the post-it notes. This activity is intended for students to look closely at the images and simply observe before attempting any interpretations. It is suggested the process is modeled with a shared image and then be done individually with subsequent sharing done in groups. Activity: After looking at the physical qualities of the lost thing and other “things” in the utopia scene, student can draw or construct their own “thing”; these creations can then be hung around the classroom to create a menagerie of “things” . Shaun began drawing and painting images for science fiction and horror stories in small-press magazines as a teenager, and has since become best known for illustrated books that deal with social, political and historical subjects through surreal, dream-like imagery. Books such as The Rabbits, The Red Tree, The Lost Thing and the acclaimed wordless novel The Arrival have been widely translated throughout Europe, Asia and South America, and enjoyed by readers of all ages. Shaun has also worked as a theatre designer, and worked as a concept artist for the films Horton Hears a Who and Pixar’s WALL–E. He is currently directing a short film with Passion Pictures Australia; his latest book is Rules of Summer (October 2013).

This response to The Lost Thing will be the culmination of previous writing tasks that have given students opportunities to articulate their interpretations and understanding of theme. Panel discussions are ideal vehicles through which students demonstrate understandings and gain experience in engaging in literary discourse. The audience will also benefit from each panel discussion by listening to other interpretations and responses to The Lost Thing. Since the panel discussion requires students to synthesise knowledge and skills gained over previous lessons, extensive preparation time is not required. Even so, at the Year 7/8 level students may gain in confidence by having a practice run within their friendship groups. What’s Shaun Tan done here? While Pete’s advice isn’t total nonsense, it feels about as deep as a Facebook meme. Tan is definitely spoofing the archetype: “He paused for dramatic effect”. The anagnorisis is symbolised with a literal door open, and a big red button. The boy learns that there is a whole other world full of non-conforming things right behind the boring veneer of society. You can buy a big red button from those cheap stores online. Search for: Fire Missile Eject Panic Car Cigarette Lighter Plug Outlet Button Cigarette Novelty Lighters Cover Fits Most Vehicles Standard 12 Volt Power Source NEW SITUATIONActivity: Find evidence within the images or written text that supports the reading that the lost thing is gentle and vulnerable. (Could any other adjectives apply?) This is a comprehensive resource by ACMI that offers many avenues to consider the book in conjunction with its film adaptation. Provide students with post-it notes to generate as many “tugs” on the rope as possible (evidence to support statement on the “yes” side, evidence to reject statement on the “no” side. Representations of belonging: Using the picture books of Shaun Tan. A chart outlining essential aspects of visual grammar, divided into the categories of representational, interactional and compositional meanings.

What started out as an amusing, nonsensical story about a freak soon developed into a fable concerning serious social issues, with a rather ambiguous ending. I became quite interested in the idea of a creature or person who really did not come from anywhere, or have an existing relationship to anything, and was ‘just plain lost’ as one character puts it. I wanted to tell the story from the point of view of a teenage boy, that would represent how I might personally respond to this situation. Krauth, N. Creative Writing and the Radical. Teaching and Learning the Fiction of the Future. Multilingual Matters. Bristol. 2016 Most time was invested in the careful building, texturing and lighting of digital elements to create a unique aesthetic that avoids the artificiality of CG objects as much as possible; almost every surface is essentially hand-painted using non-digital materials: acrylic paint, pencil, oils and collage. Year 7: (ACELA1782) (ACELA1763) (ACELT1619) (ACELT1620) (ACELT1803) (ACELY1804) (ACELY1722) (ACELY1724) (EN4-1A) (EN4-3B) (EN4-8D) (EN4-2A) (EN4-5C) (EN4-6C)

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Focus on the different angles and perspectives used to represent the boy’s world. Describe three of these perspectives in detail and explain what they add to the story.

Viewing The Viewer‘: postmodern picture books for teaching and learning in secondary English education. The set of resources available here are based on Shaun Tan’s collaboration with Gary Crew in The Viewer. The “Scaffold for Reading Visual Images” can be easily adapted and used for The Lost Thing.Some guidance should be given about the purposes and conventions of panel discussion; principally, it is not a debate where points are given for diminishing the contributions of others in the eyes of the audience/assessor (as in a debate). Rather, all members are responsible for the success of the discussion by maintaining the flow of ideas and elaborating them. This means coming prepared with questions to ask of each other and willingly responding to other members’ comments, whether to agree, disagree, elaborate, seek clarification, or support with other examples.